Batlow

History

Before European settlement the Wiradjuri people lived in the Batlow area. Hamilton Hume and William Hovell were the first Europeans to explore the area in 1824, en route to Port Phillip. When gold was discovered in the area in 1854, a small settlement called Reedy Creek was established as a supply point and service centre for the mining area, and a Mr Batlow surveyed a townsite nearby. The gold deposits were quickly exhausted, but farmers found the area better suited to a variety of crops, so the mining supply point was moved and the current township established around 1855. Reedy Flat Post Office opened on 1 August 1873 and was renamed Batlow in 1889. Fruit trees and timber quickly became the main sources of income for the town, and in 1910 the townsite was gazetted. In 1922, the first cool stores in New South Wales were constructed in the town. At the same time a railway was built from nearby Tumut. These developments facilitated the town's trade with Sydney and beyond. The district supplied troops with dehydrated fruit and vegetables during World War II. Many Land Army Girls were stationed in and around Batlow during the Second World War and a sizeable collection of memorabilia is held at the Historical Society Museum. There are two Soldier Settlements close to Batlow, Willigobung and Kunama. On 4 January 2020 the town was damaged by fire during the 2019–20 Australian bushfire season. In the town itself at least 17 homes were destroyed, as well as the old hospital and service station. Outlying properties were also affected with hundreds of apple trees "scorched".

Most-observed species

• Superb Fairywren

  Malurus cyaneus (Ellis, 1782) · Aves
  187
• eastern grey kangaroo

  Macropus giganteus Shaw, 1790 · Mammalia
  166
• Australian Magpie

  Gymnorhina tibicen (Latham, 1802) · Aves
  149
• Gray Fantail

  Rhipidura albiscapa Gould, 1840 · Aves
  138
• Yellow-faced Honeyeater

  Caligavis chrysops (Latham, 1801) · Aves
  132
• Crimson Rosella

  Platycercus elegans (Gmelin, 1788) · Aves
  126
• Bogong moth

  Agrotis infusa Boisduval, 1835 · Insecta
  125
• White-throated Treecreeper

  Cormobates leucophaea (Latham, 1802) · Aves
  98

Most recent

• M 2.8 — 2019-09-25
  21 km WNW of Cooma, Australia
• M 3.7 — 2012-04-19
  36 km ENE of Tumut, Australia
• M 2.6 — 2007-04-29
  35 km W of Yass, Australia
• M 2.9 — 2005-01-02
  35 km W of Duffy, Australia
• M 3.9 — 2004-02-28
  16 km SSE of Junee, Australia
• M 3 — 2003-05-17
  8 km NW of Kosciuszko National Park, Australia